With his newest single, ‘The One To Call,’ John Goldrust tenants the cave of love’s disillusionment. A brooding, atmospheric number that marries the ominous vocal cadence of Ozzy Osbourne with the anthemic grit of The Cult, this song feels as much like a sonic experience as it does a consideration of the state of romance in the present age.
Entirely written, performed, and produced by Goldrust, ‘The One To Call’ is a universe where shallow contacts have supplanted powerful emotional connections. The track asks if love can exist in an age of rapid-fire hook-ups and immediate satisfaction, comparing contemporary dating culture to a mass experiment that has undone hundreds of years of courtship behavior. Through cryptic yet evocative lyrics, Goldrust depicts a love story lost in translation, a whirlwind of feelings that brand in the dark and where the lucky prize is to connect genuinely.
Tension and contrast are the underlying musical forces of the song. The haunting, delayed vocal melody of Goldrust builds unhinged unease, a hallmark of Ozzy’s signature style. Wailing guitars crash into spooky chimes, like the ghostly musical pocket watch from A Few Dollars More, giving cinematic heft to the song’s atmosphere. The pulsing foundation, starting as a programmed drum beat, is eventually replaced by a live kit, injecting a gritty, unpredictable energy that underlines the song’s whiff of instability and longing.
‘The One To Call,’ recorded in Goldrust’s converted summer house studio, has a handmade intensity. Every note, every sonic layer, feels careful yet utterly organic, reminding us that in isolation, Goldrust has made something genuinely salient, a curse against carnal love in a time when it appears to die before our eyes.
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